A Big Ol' Scaredy Cat
by lleighhh
Summary: OS. AH. Bella hates Halloween. Why? Because it scares the shit out of her, but it's not like she's gonna admit it. Rated M for language. Alice, Jasper, Charlie and Edward make appearances.


**A/N:**** Oh Shit. How long has it been? Like, two years? *waves awkwardly***

**Found this little gem when I was looking through some old files on my computer. I think I was saving it to post in October, but, well, that obviously never happened. Anyways, enjoy Halloween in June :)**

**A Big Ol' Scaredy Cat**

**BPOV**

"I enjoy the thrill of getting scared."

That is a downright lie.

Anyone with enough sense in their head does not enjoy shitting their pants when something pops out from behind a dark corner yelling. I don't care who you are, where you're from, what-have-you, in that moment when the adrenaline is coursing through your veins, your heart is pounding in your ears, and your eyes are so wide they might possibly pop out of their sockets, you are not enjoying yourself.

**xxx**

"Bellaaa! It's Halloween, we can't _not_ do something!" My best friend, Alice Brandon, whined in my ear.

I knew I shouldn't have answered the phone.

Ever since I had graduated from elementary school, I hated Halloween. Once you pass fifth grade it's not about collecting barrels of candy and winning the costume contest, it's the one day out of the entire year everyone you know uses this lame excuse of a holiday to scare the bejeezus out of you.

For six years I've had everyone convinced that the reason I hate Halloween is because it's ridiculous to dress up as someone you're not and run around town asking strangers for a snack to drop in your pillowcase.

_That_ is a downright lie.

Truth is, I'm just a plain ol' scaredy cat. I refuse to turn on the T.V. the whole month of October in fear of catching a glimpse of one of those horror flicks, I spend nighttime burrowed in my bedroom with all the lights on because that's when all the freaks come out, and I pretend October 31st doesn't even exist.

Normally, I can convince Alice to make plans with someone else, whether I fake sick or some other crazy story she doesn't believe, but goes along with anyway. This year though, she's adamant about hanging out together.

"Weren't you planning on going to that party at Mike's house? Didn't Jasper ask you to go with him?" I tried to erase all possibilities of us doing something tonight by dangling her man candy in front of her face.

It only worked momentarily, but she quickly snapped out of her naughty visions of that 'hunk-'a-Jasper' quickly. "Mike's parents came home early. The party got canceled."

Well, crap.

"Bella, we haven't hung out on Halloween since we were eleven years old and went bobbing for apples in your back yard!" she whined some more.

"Alice, I don't know. I mean…"

She cut me off. "Yeah, yeah, _'Halloween is so stupid. Who wants to put on a stupid costume and walk around all stupid night and eat stupid candy?'_ I've heard it all before Bells, but we don't even have to leave your house! Let's just get a whole bunch of junk food and candy, camp out on the couch and watch spooky movies. It'll be fun!"

"I- but- Ali- I… fine." I huffed, all out of excuses. This was going to be interesting.

"Ahh! Yes! I'll be over soon with the goods! Do not try to make a run for it. You know I can track you down."

"Uh-huh, I know. Bye Alice." I grumbled and hung up the phone. It's not like I was brave enough to leave the safe walls of my home anyway.

While I waited for Alice to arrive I wished Charlie good luck as he suited up for a night of containing the hooligans of Forks. Once he left, I gathered up all the pillows and blankets I could find and threw them on the couch. If I was going to shit my pants repeatedly tonight, I was going to do it comfort.

Alice burst into my house (not noticing how I jumped fifty feet in the air from her unannounced entrance) practically vibrating with excitement. "I got all the basics. _Friday the 13th_, _I Know What You Did Last Summer_, _The Grudge_, and of course, _Paranormal Activity_ for the finale!"

I gulped. I was in for a looooonnnggg night.

**xxx**

I knew I was someone easily spooked, but the last three movies just proved to me even more how smart I'd been for ignoring this day in the past. It was roughly two o'clock in the morning and I had suffered through countless hours of screaming, killing, and trying my best to keep my own shrieks at bay.

Just as the final credits rolled and I took a deep breath of relief, Alice popped up and loaded in the final movie.

The film of all horror films. The one even Emmett McCarty, mister huge and badass wrestler, was skiddish over the whole week after he went and saw it.

_Paranormal Activity_.

I've heard so many people at school talk about how freaky it was and how they screamed their lungs off in the theater.

Let's just say, I was on the verge of a panic attack right about now.

"I haven't seen this one yet. I've been too much of a chicken to watch it by myself." Alice said wearily as the scene began and snuggled up to my side.

The movie wasn't even two seconds in when I heard a creaking noise.

"Alice, is that you?" I shook her shoulder hastily.

"What are you talking about? I didn't hear anything. Just watch the movie Bella, you're freaking me out."

_Crrrreeeeeaaakkkk! Tap, tap, tap. Crrrreeeeeaaakkkk! Tap, tap, tap._

"Alice! You don't hear that?" I practically shrieked this time.

_!_

It was louder this time.

"Holy shit!" Alice squealed and covered her mouth, eyes wide.

"What. The. Fuck?" I mouthed mostly to myself, but Alice noticed and shrugged her shoulders tightly, not wanting to make any sudden movements.

Neither of us had enough guts to turn around and figure out what was going on behind us.

I noticed one of Charlie's nightsticks sitting on the coffee table in front of us, so with a shaky hand I grabbed it and slowly rose from the couch. Alice was clinging to my arm and came with me as I rounded the corner of the couch, towards the stairs where the sound seemed to be coming from. I pressed my body up against the wall and faster than a racecar I flicked on the lights, waving my stick around hoping I injured whatever it was before it attacked me.

I felt Alice relinquish her grip on my arm and that's when I realized my eyes were squeezed shut. I slowly peeked one open and saw there was nothing there and the noise had stopped.

"Huh. That was weird. Maybe it was just your house shifting or whatever." Alice acted like it was no big deal.

She turned to go back to the couch but I grabbed her shoulder, "We are not watching the rest of that movie." I said in a bold tone.

She took one look at my face and saw how genuinely scared I was. She looked a little shocked, which was understandable considering I had fooled into thinking Halloween was just a big joke to me as well, but understood and nodded her head.

"Yeah, okay. Let's just go to sleep."

We carried up all the blankets and pillows to my room and I turned on the hallway light, leaving my bedroom door open before crawling into bed beside my best friend.

Who, by the way, had the most judgmental smirk on her face I think I've ever seen. "Scared of the dark, are we?"

"Shut up, Alice."

She just giggled, "Nighty, night Bella. Don't let those monsters bite!"

"I hate you, Alice."

**xxx**

At some point that night I shot up in bed, ramrod straight. Something didn't feel right.

Alice was obnoxiously snoring beside me, so I shook her shoulder a little, willing her to wake up.

"Uh. Bellastoppit. I'mtryinuhsleep." Her words were meshed together as she swatted away at my hand.

I kept shaking. "Alice, wake up. _C'mon_!"

"Whyyyy?" She groaned and lifted her droopy body up off the mattress.

I wasn't given the chance to answer her because the same noise from earlier beat me to it.

_Crrrreeeeeaaakkkk! Tap, tap, tap. Crrrreeeeeaaakkkk! Tap, tap, tap._

Both our heads whipped in the direction of my bedroom door, hanging wide open. The sound came from the hallway and it was louder this time.

Why, for the love of_ frick_, did I leave my door open?

I don't think either of us even shed a breath as we waited for some big scary killer to appear in my doorway.

"What time is Charlie supposed to get home?" Alice ever-so-quietly whispered in my ear.

"Not until about six in the morning."

"What time is it now?"

I turned my head the minimum amount I needed to look at my alarm clock, and then snapped my focus back to the hallway. "Two thirty."

_Crrrreeeeeaaakkkk! Tap, tap, tap. _

_...Screeeeeeep._

"Shit!"

When the new sound echoed through my empty house, Alice dove under the covers and started reciting the Lord's Prayer.

_Honey, no way is the Lord gonna change whoever is out there's mind from killing us._

I blindly felt around for Charlie's nightstick and dug out a flashlight from my nightstand drawer. My hands wear shaking and I could barely hold either of the items. My stomach had changed its residence to my throat and all the saliva in my mouth had evaporated.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Alice hissed, one eye peeking out from under her safety blanket. I waved my hand behind me, just hoping she would shut her trap long enough to keep me from chickening out of this.

I stared down at my feet as I walked forward, trying to even out my breaths. When my big toe first hit the light glowing in the hallway I hesitated before lifting my head and fully exiting my bedroom.

There was nothing there, only the boring tan and white staircase that has always been. I let out a huge sigh of relief.

_Screeeeeeeeeep. Screeeeeeeeeep. Screeeeeeeeeeeep._

Oh, hey stomach, welcome back to my larynx.

A small red dot was floating around at the bottom landing of the steps. It would start climbing up and up, closer to me, but then lower all the way back down to the landing. Each time it came up though, it would add a stair. Meaning sooner or later it would reach the top.

_Meaning_ I wasn't going to find out what happened when it did.

I sprinted back inside my bedroom, slamming the door behind me and flicking on the lights. "Alice, something is out there."

"Who?" she asked worriedly.

"No, not someone, _something_." I stressed.

"I don't understand." Her bottom lip started to quiver; she new exactly what I meant.

I had no idea what to do and if Alice started crying, I probably would too and where was that going to get us? Death by the little red dot, that's where.

"Alice, please, you can't do this. I need you. I need you to help me here." I plead.

"Okay." She sniffed and slowly rose from her spot on the bed over to me.

We ransacked my closet, putting on warm clothing and running shoes so if, or when, we made a break for it, we wouldn't have any disadvantages. I found an old wooden plank sitting in the corner of my closet that I gave to Alice so she wouldn't be without protection and after giving her and myself a very rushed pep talk, we clasped hands and emerged from my bedroom.

The red dot was gone.

Shit, shit, shit! Why did that make me feel even more scared than when it was there?

_Tap, tap, tap. Tap, tap, tap._

"Bellaaaa…" Alice whispered frantically. I squeezed her hand for comfort and pulled her into Charlie's bedroom, shutting the door behind us.

Once in there I ran over to his underwear drawer where he kept his emergency self-defense weapons. I shoved some pepper spray into Alice's back pocket, a low-key taser in mine, and traded Alice's two by four for her own nightstick.

Just as I had reached for the doorknob to face the hallway again, noises started coming from downstairs. Knobs were being jiggled and stomps were n=being stomped.

"Bellaaaa!" Alice yell-whispered.

"I know. I'm scared too, but we're not going to let whatever this is hurt us, okay?"

I didn't get any response back, so I just hoped that she was nodding in agreement and slowly opened the door.

There were no lights on in the hallway anymore, just the moon from outside shining in through the window… and that fucking red dot.

I pulled Alice with me as we trampled down the stairs, running to the front door and pulling on the knob.

It.

Wouldn't.

Open.

"DAMMIT!" I screamed and drug Alice over to the side door through the living room.

I pulled and pushed and kicked, but it wouldn't budge. I even went for the glass and tried breaking it, but my trembling limbs were too weak to even puncture it.

I hadn't realized I was crying until I felt one of Alice's arms wrap around me and squeeze tight while she wiped my tear-stained cheeks.

"We're gonna die. An axe murderer is in the house right now, and he's gonna come for us and we're gonna die." I practically wailed.

Alice just sat there shushing me while she squeezed me even tighter, her eyes shot around the house wildly.

_Screeeeeeeeeep. Crrrreeeeeaaakkkk! Tap, tap, tap._

"OH MY _GOD_!" I screamed. This was it. Whatever it was sounded like it was only a few inches away from my ear.

"Alice, I have to tell you something." I said in a rushed whisper, "I've only ever kept one secret from you... I hate Halloween!"

"Bella, I know this! Now _shut up_ so I can attempt to save our lives." She whispered back harshly.

I continued anyway, "No, I don't hate Halloween because I think it's stupid. I hate it because it scares me. All of it!"

_Tap, tap, tap, taptaptaptap._

And here comes the red motherfuckin' dot of doom again.

Alice and I gasped as it slowly moved right in front of our feet, and then stopped.

Then everything else was all a blur. Alice let out the most ear-splitting scream I have ever heard and practically slung me on her back as she raced toward the back door.

She managed to get both of us there, but I fell off her back while she wretched the door open.

"BELLA! UP!" She barked.

I managed to control my footing and run down the steps and then catch back up with Alice as we high-tailed our asses toward the police station.

"WAIT! STOP RUNNING! JESUS CHRIST, BELLA WHEN DID YOU GET SO FAST?" Male voices shouting came from behind us.

Alice stopped, but I kept going. No way was I gonna end up on national news because they found my body thrown in the nearest river.

"BELLA FUCKIN' SWAN! IT. WAS. A. JOKE!" There was only one guy left. I could hear his feet making contact with the pavement as he gained on me.

My heart was pounding against my ribcage, my lungs felt like fire and my adrenaline was slowly disappearing.

A body slammed into my back and two arms locked around my middle.

"Stop… running… joke… damn…" The killer panted in my ear.

I started wrestling with his arms, trying to reach the taser I still had in my back pocket.

Wait. Hold the eff up. _Joke?_

I whirled around to find Edward Cullen half laughing, half wheezing.

_What a shithead._

Once he caught his breath, Edward 'Shithead' Cullen had the nerve to smirk at me and ask, "Did I just make Isabella Swan, the girl who does not participate in ridiculous events such as Halloween, run for her Daddy because she was… scared?"

It was at that moment that I realized I was only a block away from the police station.

Shit. I really booked it.

"You are truly the biggest shithead I have ever met." I spat at Edward and turned around, walking back to my house.

"I got you good! I heard you tell Alice you're little secret, by the way!" He yelled at my retreating form. "Admit it, you're just a big ol' scaredy cat!"

I whipped around to face him, "I don't know what you're talking about. I just acted scared so you wouldn't feel lame because you're stupid stunt _didn't_ scare me!"

"You are a downright liar, Isabella Swan! Just wait until next year. I'll prove it!" He said finally and started walking in the direction of his house.

Halloween fucking sucks.

* * *

**A/N: Ehh?**


End file.
